This invention has reference to a container for fluid or semi-fluid substances in small quantities. The substances to be packed according to the invention are mainly drugs consequently the following description deals with such substances. However, it should be obvious that other substances can be packed in the described container. In administering drugs, it is common to pack them in conventional tubes. The medical doctors Mona Hall, Percy Nordqvist, Eva Palmgren and Irene Wilhelmsson have reported in a study at the National Medical Conference 1974 in Sweden, that the conventional tube, irrespective of used material, is very difficult to handle for especially older people. The test tubes used by the doctors have been of various types of existing tubes, containing substances having pharmacological effects. The study is considered to be highly representative for the kind of problems appearing in the use of tubes, and it is related in Svensk Lakartidning 1975 (Swedish Medical Journal).
Tubes are sometimes intended for one-time use and sometimes for repeated use. The tube shall always be such that by squeezing, a predetermined amount of the substance can be applied on a wanted spot of the patient. However experience has shown that it is compleatly impossible to meet this requirement by using conventional tubes.
In the periodical Nord Emballage, Feb. 1975, Vol. 2, page 4, it is mentioned that it is possible to get more exact doses by using a specially designed valve. This is of course an improvement, but patients have difficulty in handling these tubes equipped with such valves. These kinds of tubes are also expensive, which is a serious disadvantage considering the large consumption of tubes in hospitals.